Linbrook Signature Monitor Review
phipiper10
Posts: 955
I know you've all been holding your breath but I recently had a little time so here is my review of the Tyler Linbrook Signature Monitors. As Ive said before my audio experience in terms of trying lots of different gear is relatively limited so forgive me.
Ive had the RT800i for 4/5 years and recently had the Lsi15 for a few weeks. The rest of the set up can be seen below. Ive had a couple of sessions with the Focal 836v and Dynaudio Focus 220 too.
I probably say this every time I make an upgrade and its the same thing I see when I see other peoples reviews of their upgrades; more vibrant, more lifelike and more detailed. Also better imaging and soundstage ..blah, blah. OK, all of that is true relative to speakers I mentioned above.
Here is what I found special about these speakers. They put everything on display. By this I mean when 3 and 4 instruments converge at one point in time a lot of times speakers just produce a sound that is a combination of the instruments being heard. With these I was still hearing each instruments and not just a single sound created by the combination of the individual sounds. I could still concentrate on each instrument, everything was accessible. Making the collision of sounds more meaningful and interesting.
I think some of these secondary and tertiary sounds - background guitars or keyboards or cymbals are much more available. Definitely not forward in an artificial way as the balance of where the sound is coming and it's presence seems natural in terms of imaging and the relationship between each instrument.
The more comparitive part:
I think Im becoming more aware of how different speakers handle different types of music. Some might be better for a particular type of music. Depending on the tracks there might have been very little difference to what Id say is a considerable difference between the Lsis and the Tylers all depending on the track. Even where differences were subtle each speaker still had its signature sound.
Tracks where vocals were the feature I played my usual Jerry Garcia and Sara Mclauchlan tracks. In both cases I felt the singers were closer with the Tylers than the Polks.
On a couple of different Wilco tracks with more sparse sounds and background noises I found more space and air, though I wouldnt necessarily say these are general characteristics or traits of these speakers. (I might consider the 836v a bit airy) I dont consider the Tylers airy. The imaging and soundstage was most definitely improved compared to the Polks on these tracks and less so on others.
I think I can say the Tylers are more revealing but also, and separately, you could technically say brighter, though they are not bright. But when comparing to the Lsis most anything is brighter, right?. The Polks just seemed to make me work a bit harder to hear some of the detail. I still heard the details but I felt I was a little challenged to hear what I was hearing from the Tylers. The Polks made me feel like I should move closer in an effort to hear more of what was going on, those background effects I mentioned- guitar, keys, cymbals and other odd sounds. They were all there but they just didnt provide the same affect as with the Tylers.
The Tylers are as smooth or almost as smooth as the Polks but because they are more revealing I dont think smooth comes to mind as an adjective for the Tylers. I think the smooth comes at a price in this case and that price is detail. As for the bass of the Tylers its what youve probably heard, tight and punchy and thats no joke. Even before the Tylers appeared, the bass from the Polks was just good but nothing beyond that, IMO. I love my HSU STF-2 so the down low is handled when necessary but I usually dont have this on during two channel listening.
Im very pleased with them at the price I paid. Comparing the Tylers at full price to a pair of used Lsi at $750 or so Id go with the Polks in a second. If you can get the Tylers at $1500 or so seems worth it to me or even a Tyler monthly special for $2k (shocking right!). Again Im not an expert but I feel I must be getting close to my personal point of diminishing return, at least for speakers.
Ill also say that I believe there is a LOT more potential in these speakers but Im limited by the room, my living room, with a 42 TV and a 5 audio rack between the speakers I know Im missing out. Two cast iron radiators with tin shields opposite the speakers and 6 really old windows to the side cant be helping either. The rear wall is only 10-12 opposite the speakers and most of the walls are bare with the exception of a few pictures and a small shelf.
Ive had the RT800i for 4/5 years and recently had the Lsi15 for a few weeks. The rest of the set up can be seen below. Ive had a couple of sessions with the Focal 836v and Dynaudio Focus 220 too.
I probably say this every time I make an upgrade and its the same thing I see when I see other peoples reviews of their upgrades; more vibrant, more lifelike and more detailed. Also better imaging and soundstage ..blah, blah. OK, all of that is true relative to speakers I mentioned above.
Here is what I found special about these speakers. They put everything on display. By this I mean when 3 and 4 instruments converge at one point in time a lot of times speakers just produce a sound that is a combination of the instruments being heard. With these I was still hearing each instruments and not just a single sound created by the combination of the individual sounds. I could still concentrate on each instrument, everything was accessible. Making the collision of sounds more meaningful and interesting.
I think some of these secondary and tertiary sounds - background guitars or keyboards or cymbals are much more available. Definitely not forward in an artificial way as the balance of where the sound is coming and it's presence seems natural in terms of imaging and the relationship between each instrument.
The more comparitive part:
I think Im becoming more aware of how different speakers handle different types of music. Some might be better for a particular type of music. Depending on the tracks there might have been very little difference to what Id say is a considerable difference between the Lsis and the Tylers all depending on the track. Even where differences were subtle each speaker still had its signature sound.
Tracks where vocals were the feature I played my usual Jerry Garcia and Sara Mclauchlan tracks. In both cases I felt the singers were closer with the Tylers than the Polks.
On a couple of different Wilco tracks with more sparse sounds and background noises I found more space and air, though I wouldnt necessarily say these are general characteristics or traits of these speakers. (I might consider the 836v a bit airy) I dont consider the Tylers airy. The imaging and soundstage was most definitely improved compared to the Polks on these tracks and less so on others.
I think I can say the Tylers are more revealing but also, and separately, you could technically say brighter, though they are not bright. But when comparing to the Lsis most anything is brighter, right?. The Polks just seemed to make me work a bit harder to hear some of the detail. I still heard the details but I felt I was a little challenged to hear what I was hearing from the Tylers. The Polks made me feel like I should move closer in an effort to hear more of what was going on, those background effects I mentioned- guitar, keys, cymbals and other odd sounds. They were all there but they just didnt provide the same affect as with the Tylers.
The Tylers are as smooth or almost as smooth as the Polks but because they are more revealing I dont think smooth comes to mind as an adjective for the Tylers. I think the smooth comes at a price in this case and that price is detail. As for the bass of the Tylers its what youve probably heard, tight and punchy and thats no joke. Even before the Tylers appeared, the bass from the Polks was just good but nothing beyond that, IMO. I love my HSU STF-2 so the down low is handled when necessary but I usually dont have this on during two channel listening.
Im very pleased with them at the price I paid. Comparing the Tylers at full price to a pair of used Lsi at $750 or so Id go with the Polks in a second. If you can get the Tylers at $1500 or so seems worth it to me or even a Tyler monthly special for $2k (shocking right!). Again Im not an expert but I feel I must be getting close to my personal point of diminishing return, at least for speakers.
Ill also say that I believe there is a LOT more potential in these speakers but Im limited by the room, my living room, with a 42 TV and a 5 audio rack between the speakers I know Im missing out. Two cast iron radiators with tin shields opposite the speakers and 6 really old windows to the side cant be helping either. The rear wall is only 10-12 opposite the speakers and most of the walls are bare with the exception of a few pictures and a small shelf.
Analog Source: Rega P3-24 Exact 2 w/GT delrin platter & Neo TT-PSU Digital Source: Lumin T2 w/Roon (NUC) DAC: Denafrips Pontus II Phono Preamp: Rega Aria MK3 Preamp: Rogue RP-7 Amp: Pass X150.8 Speakers: Joseph Audio Perspective 2, Audio Physic Tempo Plus Cables: Morrow M4 ICs & Audio Art SC-5 ePlus, Shunyata PCs Misc: Shunyata Hydra Delta D6, VTI rack, GIK acoustic panels
Post edited by phipiper10 on
Comments
-
Great review,very articulate. I have a lot of trouble trying to put into words what I'm hearing with audio gear.
The Linbrook Sigs are definitely a speaker I would like to own one day on my audio journey. -
The nailed it man.
Definition, clarity, depth and precision. The Tylers do it all.- Not Tom ::::::: Any system can play Diana Krall. Only the best can play Limp Bizkit. -
Awesome review. Very informative. I liked how you gave an individual description followed by a comparative review along with a dollar figure. For me, the ultimate test comes when I'm listening to Diana Krall sing "Besame Mucho". If I close my eyes, would I be able to reach out and grab her arse? Can I do so at a lower dollar amount?
Disclaimer: The prior statements are meant as an example of a speaker's ability to create realism and is not intended to offend Elvis Costello. Any and all similarities between my imagination and the real-life Mrs. Diana Costello is purely coincidental. -
Amazing review. Shows how room acoustics play into the midst of things too - which is probably the most important influence on the sound.polkaudio RT35 Bookshelves
polkaudio 255c-RT Inwalls
polkaudio DSWPro550WI
polkaudio XRT12 XM Tuner
polkaudio RM6750 5.1
Front projection, 2 channel, car audio... life is good! -
Nice review.engtaz
I love how music can brighten up a bad day. -
-
Nice job!! Thanks!Home Theater
Chane A3rx-c's, A2rc-c, A1rx-c's|Miller & Kreisel V-125's|Sony XBR65X810C 65" 4K LED TV|
Earthquake Cinenova Grande-5|Pioneer Elite - VSX-84TXSi-AVR|TRIPPLITE LCR2400|
Ultrasonic Amp Stand|Blue Jeans,Audioquest,Monster Cables|
2 - Channel
Polk RTA 12c's w/RDO194 TWEETS, clarity ESA caps mills resistors (full mod)|Turntable|
Anthem MCA 2|Acurus Act 3 Pre Pro|Parasound P/Ph 100|Pioneer Elite N-30|Adcom GDA600|
Premier Rack|Blue Jeans,Audioquest,Monster Cables| -
Very well put! I imagine those speakers will continue to reward you down the road.I never had it like this where I grew up. But I send my kids here because the fact is you go to one of the best schools in the country: Rushmore. Now, for some of you it doesn't matter. You were born rich and you're going to stay rich. But here's my advice to the rest of you: Take dead aim on the rich boys. Get them in the crosshairs and take them down. Just remember, they can buy anything but they can't buy backbone. Don't let them forget it. Thank you.Herman Blume - Rushmore
-
Once you change out the pre, you'll really begin to hear just how good those speakers are.HT/2-channel Rig: Sony 50 LCD TV; Toshiba HD-A2 DVD player; Emotiva LMC-1 pre/pro; Rogue Audio M-120 monoblocks (modded); Placette RVC; Emotiva LPA-1 amp; Bada HD-22 tube CDP (modded); VMPS Tower II SE (fronts); DIY Clearwave Dynamic 4CC (center); Wharfedale Opus Tri-Surrounds (rear); and VMPS 215 sub
"God grooves with tubes." -
He had me at "tertiary."
-
very nice review, thanks! you mentioned that you have had some time with the dynaudio focus 220's. would you care to compare the two?
-
The focus 220 was some time ago now but I did review them previously..
http://www.polkaudio.com/forums/showthread.php?t=49123&highlight=focus+220Analog Source: Rega P3-24 Exact 2 w/GT delrin platter & Neo TT-PSU Digital Source: Lumin T2 w/Roon (NUC) DAC: Denafrips Pontus II Phono Preamp: Rega Aria MK3 Preamp: Rogue RP-7 Amp: Pass X150.8 Speakers: Joseph Audio Perspective 2, Audio Physic Tempo Plus Cables: Morrow M4 ICs & Audio Art SC-5 ePlus, Shunyata PCs Misc: Shunyata Hydra Delta D6, VTI rack, GIK acoustic panels -
Very nice review.Marantz AV-7705 PrePro, Classé 5 channel 200wpc Amp, Oppo 103 BluRay, Rotel RCD-1072 CDP, Sony XBR-49X800E TV, Polk S60 Main Speakers, Polk ES30 Center Channel, Polk S15 Surround Speakers SVS SB12-NSD x2
-
Just came across my own review in a search....For the record everything in my rig has changed since this review except the Tylers. I don't believe they are outmatched relative to the rest of the gear.
Next move is likely to be a preamp upgrade.
Analog Source: Rega P3-24 Exact 2 w/GT delrin platter & Neo TT-PSU Digital Source: Lumin T2 w/Roon (NUC) DAC: Denafrips Pontus II Phono Preamp: Rega Aria MK3 Preamp: Rogue RP-7 Amp: Pass X150.8 Speakers: Joseph Audio Perspective 2, Audio Physic Tempo Plus Cables: Morrow M4 ICs & Audio Art SC-5 ePlus, Shunyata PCs Misc: Shunyata Hydra Delta D6, VTI rack, GIK acoustic panels -
If you are still running the Rogue, that is a solid pre as it is!Klipsch The Nines, Audioquest Thunderbird Interconnect, Innuos Zen MK3 W4S recovery, Revolution Audio Labs USB & Ethernet, Border Patrol SE-I, Audioquest Niagara 5000 & Thunder, Cullen Crossover II PC's.
